Numerous devices have been proposed to free a fisherman's hands while fishing and to relieve him of the need of always holding the rod in one or the other hand. This type of device is useful even when a fisherman is in a boat, on a pier, or on some other structure where it may be possible to lay the rod down. However, it is particularly useful for a fisherman who is standing in water either while wading for fly fishing or surf casting along the shore.
For example, the E. A. Lewandowski, U.S. Pat. No. 2,781,958 discloses a belt-mounted circular rod holder that has an arc-like support piece with belt loops and a tubular-like second piece to mount to the support piece. Provision is made not only for the receipt of the butt or handle of the fishing rod, but also of portions of the fishing rod when broken down into its respective pieces for transportation or easier handling. An elastic cord is used to secure the pieces of the fishing rod in place when the rod is broken down into its respective pieces.
Gross, U.S. Pat. No. 5,386,982 shows a self-tightening, belt-attached fishing rod holder. Here, the rod is placed in a sleeve of flexible material open at the top. The weight of the fishing rod causes a coil affixed at the top of the flexible sleeve to tighten to hold the fishing rod in place.
Webber, U.S. Pat. No. 4,569,466, discloses a fishing rod holster that uses rigid U-shaped support pieces mounted against a flat base supported by a belt around the waist of the fisherman. The fishing rod is placed between the two U-shaped pieces and held in place by gravity.
Bishop, U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,336, discloses a fishing rod holder with a hip plate of thin flexible plastic. The rod is held in place by a tubular housing, which is slidably detachable from the hip plate hence, can be adjusted to hold different kinds of fishing rods. The flat cylindrical plate is held against the waist of the fisherman by slots for receipt of a belt to go around the waist of a fisherman. The tubular support piece for the rod is adjusted to angle the rod away from the fisherman to facilitate handling and safety.
There are a variety of other inventions that hold specialized tools that may be used in other applications. One example of that is seen in Shelley et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,302,302, which discloses a tubular belt-mounted holster device for holding an aerosol can or such similar instrument that may be carried on the body of a person at the waist. The tubular support sleeve is tapered somewhat, so that an aerosol can may be dropped into the tube, where it will drop until the diameter of the tube is no greater than the diameter of the can, where it will be held in place by frictional fit. Unger, U.S. Pat. No. 5,076,478, discloses a device to be used by window washers, which has a reservoir for water as well as a slot mounted outside of but contiguous with the water reservoir for receipt of the window washing tool.
Despite all the above work many of the proposed devices have proven impractical when in use. First, a rod holder that is designed for a fly rod ordinarily will not work well with a casting rod or with a spinning rod. Likewise, a rod designed for casting or spinning will not work well with a fly rod and so on. Moreover fishing rods vary widely in weight and purpose, ranging from very small lightweight spinning outfits to very heavy spinning or casting rods that might be used in casting for large game fish weighing upwards of 100 pounds like tarpon or red sea bass. A rod holder that would work well for one type of rod will either be too light or too heavy for use with the other type of rod.
Nowadays, the recreational fisherman, especially the occasional fisherman who may only fish a few times a year at a lake or shore, uses a lightweight spinning outfit. This requires less skill and practice than does either a casting rod or fly rod. Oftentimes, such a person will employ the rod, especially on the ocean, while wearing a bathing suit or such similar clothing that will allow them to wade into the water a certain distance in order to optimize the cast of their bait or lure into deeper water behind the breaking waves, commonly called the slough. People doing this kind of surf casting using light spinning rods will usually not have a belt to secure a rod holder. Moreover, the bathing suit itself is ordinarily held into place by elastic with perhaps a tied drawstring and can easily be pulled out of place by a heavy fishing rod holder and fishing rod carried within that holder. Because nothing is worn under a bathing suit, a rod holder that pulls down a bathing suit is impractical.
None of the extant fishing rod holders known to this inventor are suitable for use with a lightweight spinning rod to be held in place by a bathing suit or other lightweight apparel that is ordinarily not equipped with a belt. It is the object of the current invention to provide a lightweight, corrosion resistant rod holder to attach by a clip to swimming trunks or other apparel not ordinarily equipped with a belt. It is designed to be easily attached and removed from the waist of the wearer. It is designed to secure a lightweight spinning rod in place to allow the user to re-bait his hook, to change hooks or lures, or to effect small repairs to the rod without ever leaving the water. It is a further object of this invention to be simple in construction and foolproof in use, to have no moving parts, and to be designed for comfortable longtime wear.